NYU Skirball Center & National Geographic Present SPINOSAURUS: LOST GIANT OF THE CRETACEOUS Tonight

NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts and National Geographic are pleased to present an evening with paleontologist and National Geographic Emerging Explorer Nizar Ibrahim as he takes the audience on a prehistoric journey through the story of "Spinosaurus: Lost Giant of the Cretaceous."

Spinosaurus, the largest predatory dinosaur and the first semiaquatic dinosaur was first discovered more than half a century ago in the Egyptian Sahara by the great German paleontologist Ernst Freiherr Stromer von Reichenbach. During the April 1944 Allied bombing of Munich, Germany, Stromer's important fossil collection was completely destroyed. Fortunately, some of his notes, sketches and photos survived, along with his scientific publications. Inspired by Stromer's work and legacy, Ibrahim began his own search for Spinosaurus, which led him to a site in the Moroccan Sahara where a partial skeleton of Spinosaurus was found in 2008. With funding from the National Geographic Society, Ibrahim and paleontologist Paul Sereno, head of the University of Chicago's Fossil Lab, worked with a team of paleontologists to analyze the new fossils and create a digital model of the skeleton using state-of-the-art technologies. The full skeletal model was featured in National Geographic magazine, on the National Geographic/NOVA special, "Bigger Than T. rex," and is currently serving as the centerpiece of a National Geographic traveling exhibition titled "Spinosaurus: Lost Giant of the Cretaceous."

With amazing video recreating the lost world of the Cretaceous-era Sahara, Ibrahim will tell the story of Spinosaurus' discovery, loss, and rediscovery, and explain what-other than its size-makes this ancient predator unique.

EVENT DETAILS

NIZAR IBRAHIM, Paleontologist

SPINOSAURUS: LOST GIANT OF THE CRETACEOUS

Tonight, November 17, 2015 at 7:30 PM

TICKET INFORMATION

Single tickets range in price from $35 to $70. Member and student discounts are available. Tickets may be purchased online at www.nyuskirball.org/natgeolive, in person at the NYU Skirball Center Box Office: Tuesday-Saturday, 12:00-6:00 P.M. or by phone at212.998.4941. The NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts is located at 566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square, New York, New York 10012.

Ibrahim is the second speaker in a four-part National Geographic Live speaker series at the Skirball Center. On Tuesday February 23, inspiring mountaineer Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, will tell the dramatic story of how she prepared for and triumphed on K2 with breathtaking photos and video from the roof of the world. Rounding out the series on Tuesday, March 29, Emmy Award-winning natural history cinematographer Bob Poole will share secrets of filming lions, crocs, elephants, and spectacular scenery, and tell how he cracked the "Gorongosa code"-learning to read the landscape and find prime locations for filming the park's spectacular wildlife.

ABOUT NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC LIVE

National Geographic Live is the live events division of the National Geographic Society,

a global nonprofit membership organization driven by a passionate belief in the power of science, exploration and storytelling to change the world. With a broad roster of talent, including renowned photographers, scientists, authors, filmmakers and adventurers, National Geographic Live's critically acclaimed programs have connected with audiences worldwide for over a century. Currently, National Geographic Live events are held in 32 cities around the world, including New York, Seattle, Chicago, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney. In each of these cities, speakers share behind-the-scenes stories from the front lines of exploration on stage alongside stunning imagery and gripping footage. In 2014, National Geographic Live events were attended by over 150,000 people. For more information visitnglive.org.

ABOUT NYU SKIRBALL CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

New York University's Skirball Center for the Performing Arts is the premier venue for the presentation of cultural and performing arts events for NYU and lower Manhattan. Since opening in 2003, the 860-seat Skirball Center has been an educational and community building resource, providing NYU's first large-scale, professional performance space on campus. Through university events, presentations, and partnerships, the Skirball Center offers a unique multi-arts performance program in its intimate proscenium theater located on the south of Washington Square in the heart of Greenwich Village.

Image: http://nyuskirball.org/calendar/natgeoibrahim